Ratchet and Clank Future: Time Out
by Dithad
Summary: This the begining of my sequal to the last game. It ended with quite the cliff hanger, so I'm hoping that that will allow my story to develope well. Fans of the series, enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Ratchet and Clank Future: Out of Time

Ratchet stared at the empty space where the Zoni had disappeared with his best friend in the universe. As he lowers his head, his remaining friends gather around him. Qwark, doing his best to be heroically sympathetic said, "Well, you know, these tiny robots, always getting lost. Had one disappear on my once. Found him a week later! Hmmm… Come to think of it, I technically didn't find _him,_ more like some scraps, but…"

"Shut up for once in your life Qwark!" Ratchet roared as he tore away from his large lime companion. Talwyn walked over to him and said "Ratchet, calm down. He's just trying his best to help, even if he isn't as usual. But what were those things?" Ratchet sighed and said "Zoni. They are inter-dimensional creatures that travel through space and time. Clank's been seeing them for a while, but I didn't think…" Ratchet broke down again, and almost started crying. But he didn't. Instead, he picked up his wrench, feeling its weight and holding it before him.

This wrench. It had helped him save galaxies and fix anything. It was the one thing left to him by his mysterious father. He knew it's every couture, how much weight it could bear, the content of the alloy, it's every scratch better than he knew himself. It was his soul. He stared at his reflection in the chrome plating of the blade, the Last Son Of Lombax. He rose, pulled the Dimensionator off of Zepher's head, and took it into the lab. Talwyn ran after him and called, "Hey! What are you doing? Even if it worked, it's to dangerous to use!" "That's right, it is. And those freaks are going to find out exactly how dangerous when I get this thing working." Talwyn muttered something and walked back to Cronk and Zephyr, who were talking with Qwark. "Yeah, he's been that way since I met him, hot headed, getting in over his head, as a matter of fact, I actually rescued him twice, once when he was in mortal…"  
"What about shut up did you not understand, you liar!?" Yelled a voice from the lab.

"Oh, well, okay, maybe it was only once."

"Qwark!!"

"Okay, okay, it was me trying to kill him. Can you blame a guy?"

Both of the ancient drones looked at each other and Cronk said "Well, actually, that's how we met. Summer of… "

"It was winter you decrepit mono digit moron!"

"It was not! It was hot enough to fry a morlud possum baby!"

"That's because it was winter on Veldin!"

"Oh yeah, why were we there anyway?"

"Uh…. It'll come back to me. Dang it! CPU's not what it used to be."

"How could it be what it never was!" Cronk said as he smacked Zepher over the head, and lost that arm.

"Enough!" Talwyn said. "We've got to stop him. If he reactivates that thing it could be bad, like end of the world bad."

Qwark suddenly looked at his watch and said "Oops, look at the time, got to go, press conference from saving the universe and all that. See you later!" As Qwark ran down the hall to his ship, Talwyn sighed and said "Well, that's one problem down, 3 to go."

Meanwhile, some where so very far away, Clank was. That was all he could discern at the moment, that he was. He was floating in some kind of bluish light that was as foggy as his head, and occasionally Zoni appeared and disappeared from view. Finally, Clank overcame the fog and said "What is it you want?"

Several appeared around him and said "Sire, we must protect you. The hoard is to be unleashed in your time. None can stop it."

The last thought (or word, he couldn't really tell) Clank had before falling back into the mental murk was "Ratchet… will."


	2. Chapter 2

Ratchet worked on the Dimensionator all through the night, and into the next morning. Talwyn went in when he didn't come to lunch and found him slumped over his workbench, asleep and drooling over a set of strange plans. It was some kind of armor and weapon combo, and it looked powerful. Talwyn gently shook Ratchet, who looked up groggily, and said "Hey."

"Hey."

"What time is it?" He asked, wiping the sleep from his eyes. "About 1, Nundac time." "Huh, that means it's only eight AM in Metropolis. I'd better start working again." He reached for his power drill, but Talwyn moved away from his hand. "No, you need to get something to eat and a nap." Ratchet looked up, "No, I have to keep going. Clank needs me." "I don't think you understand…"

"NO!! YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!!" Ratchet roared, standing up suddenly. "I WILL find Clank, and I will not rest until I do."

"Okay, your right. I don't understand." Talwyn said angrily "but your no good to Clank dead."

The fire in Ratchet's eyes died, replaced by water as his expression softened. "I'm sorry, Talwyn, but it's just that he's the best friend I have in the universe. We've been through everything together, and he's taught me so much." Ratchet wiped the moisture from his eyes and continued, " When he landed on Veldin, I was bitter, angry, and resentful of everyone. I was just left on Veldin in a basket with my wrench for an old Humanoid couple to raise. Then Clank showed up, he got me off the planet and showed me what a jerk I'd been, and showed me how to be a hero. If it wasn't for him, I would never have gotten off that uncivilized piece of rock. I would never have saved the universe. I would never have met…" He stopped and got a slightly dreamy look in his eye.

Talwyn raised an eyebrow and said "Really? I had you pegged for a loner." "Unfortunately, I kind of am. That's why we broke up."

"Ouch. Well…" She suddenly froze and spun about, both blaster pistols at the ready. "Come out! I know your there!"

A rather lanky robot with huge eyes and a pair of antenna came around the corner and said "Please 'olster the a'tillery miss, I was just comin' to check on the Cap'n" It was Petey, the old pirate. "Come on in Petey." Ratchet said. Petey walked to his captains side and looked down and the Dimensionator and the plans next to is. "You gonna be wantin' to use a Carbox-Raritanium alloy for this part 'ere." Petey said, pointing at the design. "But all in all, it's a noice piece o' work Cap'n." Ratchet looked and said, "Huh, that's pretty good. I didn't realize you were an engineer." Petey chuckled and said "Ol' Cap'n Slag, rest 'is processors, didn't keep me around jus' as a drinkin' buddy. I'm programmed in all fields of engineering, and kept the ships and weapons all runnin'."

Petey suddenly shook his head and said "Good gravy! I remember why I came in 'ere. I wanted to ask when you wanted to officially take control of your fleet officially." Talwyn looked at Ratchet quzzicaly. "Huh?" "Oh, I killed Slag and according to their laws, I'm captain now." "Wow. Impressive. How big's the fleet?" "Oh, a dozen cruisers, all fully loaded, with about fifty small fighters and a dozen troop transports each. Each one, terror of the galaxy." Petey said proudly.

Ratchet thought a minute and said "Petey, I have some business with a few Zoni, and I'll be gone in the meantime. I hereby name you acting captain, and order you to get all those ships in top shape, I want everything spotless, neatly put away, and running like it's brand new understand?" Petey looked as though he might cry, if he had tears. "Thank ye Cap'n! It's an 'onnor! Actin' Cap'n!" He went off, busily congratulating himself.

"That takes care of that." Ratchet said, "Now, where's that lunch?"

They walked into the kitchen, where Talwyn made some tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Ratchet bit into his and said "Mmmmm… Reminds me of when I was a kid." "Yeah, me too. My dad wasn't much of a cook." She giggled and said "most of the time, we lived off pre packaged food, but when he did cook, it would be either this, or terrible." "Yeah, my foster parents didn't really know how to cope with a Lombax diets, so when they found out that I liked this they just kept feeding it to me." They ate and talked about their days as younglings, and pretty soon Ratchet's recent exploits came up. "Yeah, so Drex, Qwark and the Protopets, Dr. Nefarious, the recent thing with Tacheon, Vox and the Deadlock collers, plus the incident with Luna makes six times I've saved the galaxy." "Whoa. Makes me feel like and under achiever." "What have you done? I mean, besides your dad and all." "Well, I've found hundreds of Lombax artifacts, about a dozen lost civilizations, and renovated this space station pretty much on my own. It's been fun." Ratchet raised his eyebrow and said "That's not too bad. Your dad would be proud." "_Is _proud." She corrected as she took another sip of soup.

They sat in silence until Cronk came in with a weird sphere in his hands. "Uhh… Excuse me young 'uns, but this whoosit came crashin' through the window. I thought it was those dern kids again, but this ain't no super ball." He laid it down on the table. Talwyn picked it up first and said "Hmmm… It looks like some kind of… holocron. Lombax origin. But there's no transceiver slot or keypad. How do we unlock it?" "Mind if I take a look?" Ratchet said. Talwyn tossed it to him and the center began to glow. "Huh, I guess I have a knack for this stuff." Talwyn's eye's opened wide and she said "That's it! All Lombax technology is calibrated to respond to an actual Lombax! Like that thing we stole from the pirates!" Any response Ratchet might have made was cut short by a familiar and heavy set figure being projected from the globe. Max Apogee.

"DAD!" Talwyn cried and ran towards the figure, which was thin air. Unfazed, the hologram spoke "Hi Talwyn. Sorry I left like that, but when you find me I can explain everything." He looked off to the side as the image wobbled and said "Dang it Garry! Hold the blasted camera still!" He cleared his throat as the camera steadied and continued, "Sorry about that. I only have a few minutes, so I'll get right to the point. I have just found the one thing in the universe that I never though anyone, even you, would ever find. I can't say what it is, but I know that your friend Ratchet will be interested. You need to take him along, he is… special, and you're gonna need all the help you can get. That's all I can say for now, so hurry before I explode! Talwyn, in case you don't get here, I want you to know I couldn't be prouder of you. Oh, and Ratchet, check the helmet again." The image faded and Ratchet looked into the holocron. "Huh, I wonder what that was all abo… AHHHH!" the holocron began transmitting upwards, right into Ratchet's unsuspecting eyes, blinding him until he pointed it at the wall. It was coordinates for a planet in the Solana Galaxy. "Hmmm…. What planet is that?" Talwyn asked, as she reached for her pocket galactic directory. "Don't bother." Ratchet said. "I'd know the coordinates of that miserable rock heap excuse for a planet anywhere. Veldin. Looks like I'm going home, right after I check the helmet."

Somewhere very far away, Clank was… well, he was flushing his radiator core for the fourth time in the past hour. He always did that when he was bored, well, that and calculating Pi to the last digit, but doing that 10435332.345 times did get a little old. But he felt the Zoni were disturbed by something.

"What is happening? What is the cause of the disturbance?"

Four ZOni appeared and said "Sire, it is of little concern to you. Please wait while we prepare for the Event."

"I order you to tell me."

He couldn't be sure, but it sounded like they all groaned. "An unforeseen disturbance has occurred. It seems your companion has very powerful friends. But in no way will this delay the Event."

He understood why they were so disturbed. The Zoni, apparent masters of time and space, had not foreseen something. If they had been caught off guard, they were vulnerable, and because of that, they could be defeated.

_Hmmm… it appears that they may not be immortal, as I once perceived. But what is this Event, and why am I so important?_


	3. Chapter 3

Ratchet pocketed the holocron inside his mini matter pack and he and Talwyn went back to his lab, and examined the Dimensionator. "Hmm… Why did your dad tell us to look at this thing, it's just as broken as before." Talwyn was also puzzled, and suggested "Try starting it up again, maybe it just needed time to cool off." Ratchet would have argued, but he didn't have a better idea. He sighed, and gingerly put the Dimensionator on his head.

"In case the worst happens, read File 2342."  
She nodded and asked "What is it?"

"Among other things, my last will and testament

He pulled the chord, as Talwyn watched in anticipation. The device sputtered, sputtered again, and went out. Ratchet pulled again several times until he got frustrated and pulled as hard as he could. The cord snapped and several pieces fell off, including one Ratchet wouldn't of noticed, if it hadn't been given to him. It was a large hexagonal bolt, he didn't know anything about it's origin, but he did know who gave it to him, the Plumber. Ratchet's mind flashed back to the incident, it was given so casually. He remembered all the various times that he'd seen the plumber, including the first time when he sold him the Infobot. Hmmm… Come to think of it, he did have a knack for showing up at places where I was in trouble. He almost absent mindedly pocketed it while Talwyn started picking up the pieces that had fallen to the floor. She started to put them back but Ratchet said "Don't bother, I'm taking it apart." Talwyn looked surprised and asked "What for? If you can't fix it, then you can't fix it."

"I know someone who I think can. And conveniently enough, I can also solve the problem of getting to the Solana Galaxy at the same time."

"Who is it?"

"Them. One of them is the toughest girl I've ever met. You'll like her. The other guy's the biggest geek I've ever met."

Ratchet pulled something out of his pocket that looked like a communication device emblazoned with a blue Pheonix. He pressed a few buttons, said something into it, and said "We got lucky. They were on this side of the galaxy when I called. They'll be here in two hours, so get your gear together." Ratchet put the Dimensionator in a box, and then scanned a set of plans into a holo projector before going to his room and packing a bag.

He appeared two hours later in full armor, which was entirely chrome except for pulsing lines of orange energy that snaked down the suit, carrying his helmet in one hand and a rather large duffle bag in the other. Cronk and Zepher were carrying a small box each while Talwyn had one large rolling suitcase, and a longish black case in the other. She saw Ratchet and said "Nice duds. Where'd you get them?" "Oh, It's Achilles, developed by the people who make the Ageis armor series. They contacted me and told me they wanted someone who could test it thoroughly. If I'm right, we'll be able to." "Right about what?" Talwyn asked as she loaded her stuff into her ship.

"If your dad found something as big as he thinks he did, we won't be the only ones looking for it. That could get sticky. Fortunately, I brought these." He held his hand over the ground and before him materialized a Mega Rocket Cannon, a Vaporizer, a Mini Nuke gun, an Alpha Rifle, a pair of Blasters, a Heavy Bouncer, some Groovitrons, the and the R.Y.N.O. Mark V. He picked up the R.Y.N.O. V almost lovingly and spun its many barrels of rocket death. "It's good to be back."

"I guess it's my turn." Talwyn said. She opened the black hard case and set it on the ground. Ratchet didn't know the exact guns, but by their general configurations suggested that she had an assault rifle, a pair of blaster pistols, and a defensive shield, all of highest caliber. Ratchet asked, "Where'd you get these?" "My dad. Let's just say that the Intergalactic Antiquities Recovery and Preservation Treaties don't apply to black market dealers and pirates." Ratchet muttered an "I guess not." When his blue communications device blinked, and a familiar voice came over the airwaves. "Captain Ratchet? This is the Phoenix. We are ready to roost your birds as soon as you get here, over." "Copy that Sasha. Man, it's good to hear your voice." "Especially since I'm not screaming at you this time, over." Talwyn looked over grinning and shaking her head slightly. "So." She said.

Ratchet rolled his eyes and said "No, don't even go there. I'll explain later."

They got in their ships, and within a few minutes they were aboard the Pheonix. Ratchet and Sasha hugged when he got out and he introduced Talwyn, Cronk and Zepher. Cronk and Zepher went off and started talking to the Ranger units while Sasha showed Ratchet and Talwyn to their quarters. "So… where's Clank? I thought he'd be with you." Ratchet sighed and looked down. Talwyn explained the situation with the Zoni, and Sasha nodded at the end and said "If there's anything we can do to help, don't hesitate to ask." Ratchet tossed his bag onto his usual bunk and said "Actually, there is. Where's Al?" Sasha went to a panel on the wall and tapped a few buttons, and said "Here he is. Engine Room 4, Alcove B." "I might need him for a while. Would that be okay?" "I'll have him relieved of his duties until further notice."

"Thanks Sasha. I could always count on you." "Keep talking, and you'll make your girlfriend jealous." Talwyn raised her eyebrows at that and said "Are you kidding? This guy? He's nice to have around, but being in a relationship with him is hazardous to one's health." Sasha rolled her eyes and said "Tell me about it. Ranger Patrol Beta 3223, Planet Daxx." "Not this again." Ratchet said as he started unpacking his stuff. She ignored him and continued. "Ratchet insisted that we do a sweep of Nefarious' old lab. He said it was to destroy any of Nefarious' creations that might come back to haunt us, but he really wanted steal some weapons." "I did not!" Ratchet replied. "Did so! So anyway, Ratchet wanders down a hall labeled 'Special Experiments' with all kinds of warning signs like 'Incinerate if Not Fed Regularly" and "Do Not Operate Without Raritanium Armor' so naturally, when he finds a room labeled 'Weapons Project 783 AF – DANGEROUS – DO NOT USE WITHOUT PROPER INSTRUCTION' he can't resist taking it out and trying it. Next thing I know, I hear 'Sasha! Heads up!" and feel this tingling sensation all up and down my scalp. I look in the mirror, and I have this hideous rainbow afro sticking out of my head." "Wait just a minute! I told you that the weapon had activated on it's own and was trying to get you to duck!" Ratchet said "Oh yeah right, you knew what was going on and you just wanted to see what would happen. Just like that incident with the plasma goo." "Nobody could have predicted that it would explode at that particular point. And look at the bright side, that building was coming down anyway." "Only because you'd detonated enough explosives around it to destroy a cruiser." He sighed and said "And you wonder why were platonic now. I'm going to find Al." as he picked up his box.

Ratchet proceeded to the alcove specified by Sasha, occasionally ducking loose wires and overhead parts. He found all doing what else, playing a Qwark Vid Comic. "Aha! You shall not defeat the power of Captain Qwark!" He went in with a punch, and the giant robot space eel smashed him into the ground, killing him. "Hey Al, how you doing?" He spun in his chair and said "Ahh! Ratchet! I am delighted to see you? And where is your little robotic companion?" "Actually, that's why I'm here. He's been taken by the Zoni and we need to get him back." "Zoni? I have heard some speculation about creatures of that name among the Qwark Cadets who can travel through other dimensions and time. How do you intend to fight a creature like that?" "With this." He pulled out the holo plan he had scanned earlier. Al looked over it for a few minutes and said "Prodigious Ratchet! But, I would have expected nothing of lesser caliber from you. But, why are these parts not so detailed? Surely this is no oversight?" "Those are already built. Take a look." Ratchet showed him the contents of the box, the busted Dimensionator. Al pulled down the jeweler's glass hanging over his right eye and examined it closely. After a few minutes he said "I have never seen a piece of equipment with more power packed into it than this. How did you acquire it?"

"It's a really long story. The reason I came down here was to ask your help."

"Help? You? Surely the greatest engineer in the galaxy doesn't need help?"

"I do. I can build the plans if you help me, but it's nothing without a program to tell it what to do."

"Ah! I'll start right now." He started muttering and began typing furiously on his keyboard. Ratchet tried to get his attention again, but it seemed that Al was lost in his art. Ratchet left him alone and started on his half.

Somewhere very far away, Clank had noticed something. One Zoni had appeared with a few others, and while he couldn't be sure, they appeared hurt. They were rushed away to one of the few visible structures. Clank tried to follow, but couldn't. He looked at his right leg and saw that it was chained by links of energy. He looked towards what he was tied to, but couldn't see it. Clank looked around, all the Zoni seemed preoccupied with their injured compatriots. _Hmm… Well, I have no better idea._

Clank began following the chain.


	4. Chapter 4

Talwyn woke up, and tried to stretch, but was stopped by a piece of glass. She panicked, and sat up, only to smack her forehead on glass. She shook her head and remembered where she was, the sleeping quarters aboard the Phoenix. She fumbled for the door button for a moment before finding it and got out. Ratchet wasn't here. In fact, she hadn't seen him since he had disappeared yesterday. Oh well. He could wait until she'd had a shower. She started the shower up and felt the sweet relief as the wet warmth spread all over her. Much better than the showers back home. She got out and picked an outfit. It wasn't as functional as most of her outfits, but a shirt and jeans beat armor any day when it came to comfort. Now to find Ratchet. Talwyn looked around until she found the panel Sasha used yesterday. She tapped in and tried to find the personnel locator, but access was restricted. She smiled, looked around, and pulled out a small bottle of aerosol glue. She sprayed a fine mist over the panel and blew some dust onto it. _Perfect. _Several forefinger prints that looked about Sahsa's size were clearly visible. Hmm… Seven digits. 2,2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 8. No clear pattern, not enough digits for a galactic ID, and to high for a birthday, so maybe it was one of those old school phone codes. What the heck was a phone anyway? She shrugged it off and pulled out her mini computer, and pulled up the decoder program. After a few menus, she got the phone code decoder up and running. After a few minutes, it gave her some answers. She scrolled through them, dismissing most as gibberish or highly unlikely. She got closer to the end and one answer popped out at her. _Ratchet. Of course! So THAT's who he was talking about._ She punched it in. "Welcome Sasha." _Hmm.. Personnel locator, locate by name, Al. Lab 1, deck 3C. _ She logged out and walked out of the room, only to run into Sasha. "Oh, excuse me." She said. "Where's Ratchet?" "Beats me. I though he might be with you." Talwyn said. "He must be with Al." She walked over to the wall panel and saw the fingerprints. Sasha spun around, furious and yelled "How dare you hack into MY ship! Those files are sensitive and personal! You have behaved disgracefully!" "Okay, okay, chill. I just used the locator to find Al, He's in Lab 1 on deck 3C." Sasha was still fuming, but managed to say "Alright. We'll go find him and Ratchet. And, I'll keep this out of the logs. BUT only on tone condition, that you NEVER do this again. Understood." Talwyn had been throughout the galaxy and had gotten really tough along the way. But something about this particular person made her want to submit before she got hurt. "Yes ma'am."

"Good. Now, let's find a hover platform to 3C." They rode in silence. When they got to the lab, it was very quiet, and several pieces of equipment were smoldering from energy blasts. Both girls drew their blaster pistols, and proceeded forward in silence, looking all around them. Sasha knelt down near a fried energy conduit and said "This is no weapon I've ever seen. No scorching and no fraying of any of the wire materials." "Ratchet?" "Maybe, or someone from his past." "Anyone in particular?" "No, but it remains a possibility."

_No, Ratchet may have some enemies, but none that could do this kind of damage and get on this woman's ship without a gross of alarms going off. _Talwny thought. _I just hope he's okay, without him I won't find my dad. What was that? _Talwyn spun towards one of the halls that branched out from the main lab. What she had heard was… well, a woosh, but one that sounded like it had a massive amount of energy behind it. Then it stopped, but she could still hear a faint bu.

"Okay Al, this puppy's warmed up. Let's see what the shields can really do. Fire up the R.Y.N.O!" They heard the distinctive explosive popping of the R.Y.N.O, and a second later a noise they'd never heard, almost like a dull wumph, with a wush behind it. They holstered their weapons and walked in. Sasha said "Hello boys. What are you doing?" The buzzing stopped, and Ratchet yelled a quick "Nothing!!" Before Al could say a word. Talwyn and Sasha both cocked their heads and puth their hands on their hips, shaking their heads incredulously. Sasha said "Well, breakfast at 0700, Cook's making pancakes Ratchet." Ratchet did a silent fist pump and started gathering some gear of his. Just as Talwyn was about to leave, something about Ratchet's armor caught her eye. It was the Achilles armor, but the lines snaking and down the suit had changed from orange to blue, and there was a pack on his back that she haddn't seen before.

_Lombaxes. Can't leave anything the way it is._ She thought as she went after Sasha.

Somewhere very far away, Clank was humming to himself as he followed the chain that was bound to his leg. He started thinking about the Zoni's plan for him. If they could truly see the future, they may have anticipated his current course. He paused, an then continued. They had not forseen the injuring of their companions, so perhaps the Event and the Horde were not as inevitable as they had first thought. _But are they still coming anyway? _ He wondered as he continued. At least the scenery wasn't unpleasant. It looked almost like some of the field's he'd seen in his travels, lush and green with a beautiful blue sky. He stopped about him and looked around. "What is this place?"

_The Fields of Forever. _

Clank spun around. No one. "Who are you?"

_Why do you insist on data?_

"Data is what I can interpret. It allows me to function where I can't otherwise."

_Yes, but you can do so much more. You're a freak, you know that? A real freak. _

"I do not understand you."

_You aren't just zeros and ones. You'll find that out if you keep going. However, if you decide that you'd rather go back to the Zoni and the event, you can go back. They might decide to follow you._

"If you will not answer me my other questions, at least tell me what this chain leads to?"

_Your ultimate choice. Think about it._


	5. Chapter 5

Note: G.r.e.q means Gutted, and re equipped. It will make sense in a minute.

When the ship pulled out of warp speed, Ratchet, Talwyn, Sasha and Al were all standing on the command bridge. "Home sweet home." Ratchet said sarcastically. Sasha barked a few orders to the Rangers on duty, one of which was "And get the Elites on a transport and prep my weapons."

Talwyn and Ratchet both said "Huh?" "Based on what you've told and shown me, this has the potential to become a level alpha threat to the Solana Galactic Government. Protocol demands that we give you all assistance possible until the crisis has passed. That includes ground support." "Are you sure? Maybe this isn't such a good idea…"

"Listen, I'm coming. I don't want another incident where you blow stuff up just because it's there. If there's any attacking to be done, I want it to be surgical."

"Where's the fun in that?"

"How about me not yelling at you?"

"Point taken."

"Okay you two. Enough of that. Now, how are we going in?"

"You have the map up Al?"

"Indeed." He pushed a button and a map of a particular sector of Veldin pulled up on the screen.

"This is the only sector that pulled up any unusual energy readings. As in any energy readings."

"Ha! You said it." Ratchet said.

"You recognize this sector?" Sasha asked.

"Yep. My back yard."

He zoomed in on a structure and said "This is my house, where I build my ship and this…" he pulled it over to crater to the south, "is where I met Clank."

"I'm glad you know this area." Sasha said.

One of the Rangers marched up and said, "Captain, the transport is ready, your weapons are aboard in the usual rack. Just say the word and your ready to go."

"Ready Talwyn? Ratchet?"

"You bet."

"Lets kick some!"

"Then move out!"

They proceeded to the waiting transport and loaded up. The occupants were rangers, except for a now black Cronk and Zephyr, but black and higher quality weapons. "So these are the Elites. What's different about them?" Ratchet asked as he took his familiar sergeants seat. "Sir, we have enhanced armor, limited cooperative shielding capabilities, and have limited self preservation programming." "So no running like the standard units?" "No sir." "About time." Talwyn sat next to Cronk and Zephyr and asked "Okay, I know something's different besides the paint jobs." Cronk put a pround hand on his chest and said "Yep, all new servos, upgraded memory chips, and brand spanking new XDSS 9.7666 integrated processor chips. The doc bot fixed us up right." "Yeah, now I can actually remember stuff about when you were little. My, you were cute. I mean, you still are, but then…." "I get it."

Ratchet turned to Sasha and asked "So do you really think that all the firepower is necessary?"

"Better to not need it and have it than need it and not have it."

22"You always did think ahead."

"Thanks."

They smiled at each other as the ship took off and descended to the planet below.

The troop transport landed and everyone disembarked. After a minute, one of them came back and saluted "Perimeter secure ma'am, no hostiles in sight." "Thank you Ranger. Carry on." Sasha said. She turned to Ratchet and asked "Do you recognize this area?" "Like the back of my hand. This way." He led them and the sergeant Ranger to the top of a hill, where there was a small structure nestled at the bottom and another way across the valley.

"Here it is. My house."

One the Ranger sergeant popped a screen out of his arm and said after a moment "Minimum energy disturbance. I can see only one small weapon, two life forms, one C grade droid. Final analysis, Class F - threat." Talwyn said "You can tell all that from that little screen?" ""No ma'am, the Phoenix's sensor array tells me everything I need to know." "Uhh… Never mind." They walked down the hill and up to the front door.

Ratchet was about to knock on the door, but hesitated. "What's the matter?" Talwyn asked "What's wrong?" "Nothing. Just last time I saw my foster parents, they kicked me out and I swore I'd come back." Ratchet swallowed, and knocked.

A few seconds later, the door was opened by a modified service robot. "Hello Max 1. Are Gloria and Robert home?" "Indeed Ratchet. May I say it is good to see you again." "Thanks Max 1. How you been doing?" Ratchet said as he stepped inside, accompanied by everyone except the Sergeant Ranger. "The last series of upgrades you provided before your last departure have served me and your foster parents well." "Well that's good." As they walked into a living area with two humanoids in it, facing a TV. Ratchet quietly said "Hey Max 1, I'm gonna be around for a while, so head to my shop and I'll upgrade you when I'm done talking to Gloria and Robert. Cool?" "Indeed. I will see you there." Max 1 said, and then left the room.

"Hello Gloria, hello Robert. It's me, Ratchet." Gloria immeadeatly jumped up and spun around and said "Why Ratchet! Your back!" She ran over and hugged him tightly before pulling back and smacking him. "OW! Son of a quark! What was that for?" "That's for leaving without telling me again, like you promised you wouldn't!" "It wasn't my fault! I was teleported onto a ship headed for the Bogon Galaxy by the president of Mega…" "I don't care if it was Captain Qwark himself! You told me you wouldn't and then you never called!" She looked behind him and said "Shame on you for making me yell in front of guests. Come on in dears! You can both call be Gloria. And who are you dear?"

"Hello ma'am. I'm Sasha, Captain of the SGGS Phoenix."

"Oh my. That is… impressive. And you dear?"

"Nice to meet you, I'm Talwyn Apogee, I'm an archeologist, explorer and general finder of Lombax artifacts."

"Oooh! So have you found anything relating to Ratchet?"

She smiled and said, "No ma'am, not yet."

"Please, call me Gloria. What is your specialty Talwyn? Ancient civilizations, Lombax, ancient technology reconstruction…"

Talwyn knew she had a kindred spirit on her hands and began talking at a rapid and dizzying pace like when two experts in a field meet and talk about their field. "Well, I do a little bit of everything, but my true passion is Lombax artifacts and ancient civilizations. I love nothing more than to unearth a new find that reveals something about ancient cultures, like just before I met Ratchet I was out on an expedition to a large swamp planet…" and as she continued the two walked into the kitchen. Ratchet cleared his throat and said "Hello Robert. How have you been doing?" Robert stood up and said "Nice to meet you Captain Sasha. I'm General Robert Hillworth, 2334th SGGS Airborne Battalion, retired. I was on the Pheonix once, right before I retired. Have they renovated her yet?" "Yes sir, a full g.r.e.q. about six months ago. Only thing they haven't replaced are the engines." "Good solid pieces of work. Got my men out of a nasty scrap too. It was over Damosel during the Lombax war see it was a Cragmite offensive and our mission was to…" And he soon took her to his office to show her all his war trophies and memorabilia, which left Ratchet alone. He walked to his old room. Man, he hadn't been in her in a long time. Last time he was here he'd unwrapped a part for the ship he build that got him and clank of this planet in the first place. And there was a holo image of him at six, big eyes and all, another of him improving some farm equipment, and a final picture one of his foster father with an old mark one Gadgetron Blaster teaching him to shoot. He looked at his desk; the old Captain Qwark action figures on one side with the complete Dr. Nefarious and evil minion droid kit on the other, ready to face off again. _Wonder what thirteen year old Ratchet would think if he knew what Qwark really was, not to mention that he himself would really defeat Dr. Nefarious!_ He sat at hid old desk, now just a bit too small for him, and opened the deep drawer on the right. It had all his old experimental gadgets, a belt buckle stun gun, a toad mesmerizer, a pair of spring loaded insta-tall boots, a laser dust eliminator, a bed-making robot, among other things. He turned some over fondly and remembered building them before putting them in his bag. He should leave. This wasn't his room, or his house and it never really was. He quietly slipped out the front door and to his shop.

When Talwyn and Sasha found Ratchet a few hours later, he was in his shop repairing Max 1. Talwyn said "Hey Ratchet! Why didn't you tell me your foster parents are so awesome? Your mom is one of the foremost experts on ancient tech reconstruction in the galaxy. She build something called a VCR, that uses magnetic tapes to play back no holographic video! She showed me some of the magnetic tapes, and it's amazing how lame of video quality these people were willing to endure!"

"Yeah, I've seen the same thing. In fact, ya know, I think I've heard so much about how they work that I could build one blindfolded if I had a soldering iron, some silicon board and enough of the right kind of transistors." Ratchet said scathingly.

"Oh, so I guess your moms pretty obsessed, huh?"

"You don't know the half of it. You know why I wanted to get off this miserable rock in the first place? Huh?? So could find my real parents. Crazy Archeology Women and Soldier Man didn't make the best of parents. The first one was only concerned with old junk that people threw away centuries ago for a good reason. The other was only concerned with making me into a soldier, and it was discipline, discipline, and discipline. I could never be good enough, my sheet weren't done right, my windows weren't clean; my shoes had dust on them, anything. So set up this place. I would come here most days to get away from them, just build stuff. Like Max here. Remember when I brought you online?" He said sa he tightened a bold on his arm plating.

"My environment sensors recoded the event perfectly. It was 27 degrees Celsius, 50 humidity and partly sunny, soil was at 12."

"I built him to be a farmers helper." Ratchet explained. "Thus his preoccupation with the weather."

"For your dad I assume?." Sasha asked, gingerly sitting down on an old brown recliner.

"Sort of. But Roger said…." He paused, a pained look came over his face. "I don't want to talk about it. Anyway, when that didn't work I upgraded him to be my assistant, but eventually Gloria recruited him into domestic service."

"Anyway, did the Rangers find anything?"

"Well, yes, an old facility, a bunch of damaged parts, a large one pilot robot that was destroyed by weapons fire, and a patch of ground that contains a strange energy signal. They wanted my okay before going in."

"Okay then, let's go." He picked up his Omni wrench and they all left. Max tidied up a bit and said "Oh master, if you only knew how your foster father felt about you."

They arrived at the spot, it looked normal, but everyone felt the static in the air. Noticing Sasha and Ratchet's fur standing up on end, Talwyn chuckled and said "One of the many advantages of being a Makadian."

"I know this place."

"Really? What can you tell us?"

Suddenly Ratchet shot just above the heads of some Rangers with digging equipment. "For one thing, don't start digging."

"Okay, that was a little extreme, don't you think? Why is it so important?"

"Because of what's under the surface."

"Which is?"

"I have no idea."

Ratchet grabbed his head and started screaming. "NO!! We have to leave! DON'T DIG! NOT DIG!" He started foaming at the mouth and started gesturing wildly with his pair of Blasters and started firing up in air shouting "NOT DIG! NOT DIG!! RUN!!" Eveyone ran back the troop transport, and by the time Ratchet caught up, he was back to normal. "What… What… just happened?" He mumbled as he stumbled into Sasha's arms and fainted. "Chief!" she screamed "I want that ship ready to take off yesterday! Rangers units 1-11, protect the civilians until we get a ship back for you! Rest of you, with me!" The ship was off the ground and headed for the Phoenix in about 2 minutes, traveling at a velocity reserved for emergencies. Ratchet was lying down over three seats, with his head in Sasha's lap, she was whispering to him, "Come back Ratchet, come back. We need you." Ratchet started mumbling incoherently and Sahsa and Talwyn exchanged a worried glance as the ship broke the atmosphere and landed in the Phoenix's landing bay.

Clank was still traveling towards the end of the chain. He was chatting to the mysterious voice quite frequently now, and the creature had been kind enough to explain that time was slower here than in the real world, and had kept him up to date on his whereabouts. "How is Ratchet now?"

_Bad. Very bad._

Clank stoped short, and his mother board skipped a pulse. "What do you mean? Is he injured?"

_I have no knowlage of his condition, only that the troop transport carrying him was traveling at a speed reserved for rescue missions and dire situations and was immediately met by a medical team. I'll try to get more information for you, but there's some kind of flux of energy inside the Phoenix. It won't let me through._

"How did this happen?"

_All I know is that he was about to dig something up and went balsitic, quite literal with a pair of blasters._

"What was about to be dug up?"

_My old physical body._

Clank paused and thought for a second. "How can your live without a body?"

_I am not a physical creature. I am an energy being, as are the Zoni. They create husks for themselves to make travel easier, I did too, only mine was a robot._

"So, then, you are living within me?"

_Correct. To this point I have been to weak to speak. I helped you anyway that I could, for example I summoned the Zoni._

"Am I correct in thinking that you are their king?"

_It is as you say._

"Then they think I am you, they sense you within me?"

_Again, it is as you say_.

Clank pondered this for a minute.

"So that is why they kidnapped me, why they called my sire and upgraded my body?"

_Exactly. Please, talking tires me. I have little energy as is._

"One last question, why does your diction fluctuate."

_Energy is low. I need it to think. This also means I can't remember anything. Please, get to the end of the chain. I will help you. Get me to Veldin._

Clank decided to that it was time for him to let his strange companion rest.

_But if he really is a Zoni, can he be trusted? They did kidnap me._

_Over a case of identity confusion. They are not evil, just confused._

His decision completed, he continued walking down the road towards the end of the chain.


	6. Chapter 6

Ratchet was in sick bay, and had been for at least 12 hours. Sasha and Talwny had told their story to each of the four doctors on board and were stressed, panicked, and worried. The doctors whisked away Ratchet to the medical floor and Sahsa and Talwyn waited in the lobby.

"What's taking them so long?'" Sasha asked as she paced around. "They should have at least reported by now."

"It's medicine, not the military. These things take time and each of the doctors is performing a different test. I went through something like this when a pillar from a dig crushed my dad. Trust me when I say that each of those doctors is highly motivated and is working as hard as they can to heal him."

"How do you know?"

"Each has been through at least ten years of school to get here, and plus they know you'll make each one of them walk the plank if they don't fix him up."

Sasha sighed and said "Your right, I'm just worried about him, just freaking out and then passing out. What was that all about?"

"He'll be okay. If he can survive being less than ten feet away from an explosion of destabilized plasma goo, then he'll pull through this."

"Not to mention free falling 400 feet onto a mountain and then launching a Mega Nuke onto the snow above him just so he could race an avalanche with his hover board."

"Or how about when he filled that building with high explosives and then detonated it, only it turned out that…"

Suddenly one of the doctors burst into the room with a scan print out in his hand waving it around excitedly and yelling "Get Al in here!"

"What? What's going on? What's Al got anything to do with it?" Sasha asked as she pulled out her com link and started calling Al.

"It's a device planted in his brain, it has a direct interface with his mind. Al's never seen something like this, it's wicked!"

"That's it?"

"Not just that, there's a message recorded into it, but it's overloading his brain with a subconscious message that's forcing his brain to shut down. If we can remove the data from the chip, we can bring him back to consciousness."

"Al! Get up here now!" Sasha yelled into her com link. In three minutes he was up there. "Ahh… Yes captain? I'm kind of playing World of Spacecraft right now, and I'm about to max out my Paladin…"

"Can it. You are now under the direct orders of Dr. Marks until Ratchet gains consciousness."

"Whaaat? What did I miss?"

"Al, how long have you been playing?"

"Uh, about sixteen hours?"

"Fourth time in two months. I'm ending you subscription…"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

"...until Dr. Marks releases Ratchet."

"Ratchet? What's Ratchet's condition got to do with any of this?"

Dr Marks rushed forward and explained the situation and showed him the scan of Ratchet's brain.

When he was done, Talwyn asked "So, I guess your really good with computers and stuff?"

"Pretty good? I believe a better term would be excellent. Why do you ask?"

She gestured at the print out and said "Well, what is this thing exactly?

Al took the scan and set it on a nearby table he pointed and said "Well, so much of it's function is in the software, but this looks like the part that translates to the brain. And this is the CPU, a mulit core LX RD 123.33 processing unit. In other words, this is Lombax technology."

Talwyn and Sahsa both said "What??" at the same time.

"Why would the Lombaxes do this?"

Sahsa gave her a creeped out look and said "Well, you know Lombaxes, they never can leave anything the way it is. Maybe they started messing with each other…"

"But he was only a baby when he was left there!"

"Exactly!" Dr. Marks said "You see, when any baby is born, the bones are weak, mostly cartilage for at least the first few months with any species. In most baby skulls, therefore, there is usually a hole that is extremely weak connective tissue, or even just flesh. In Lombaxes, this occurs at the back of the head."

"Right where the implant is." Sasha said.

"And being so young, he would have healed up very nicely, so anyone who saw him a month or two later wouldn't have known a thing, plus the fur and all."

"So where does this leave us?" Sahsa asked.

"Well, I'll get a data hook up to that thing as soon as possible, and from there it's all Al."

"I can probably just suck the information right off of there. It might not work, but if it doesn't I can just do an on the run, where I allow the system and it's processes to run for an extended length of time, while monitoring all data moving through the CPU and routing the subsequent RAM to…"

"Just do it. I don't want to know how, just do it."

"Of course." Al and Dr. Marks disappeared into the treatment room, speaking geek amongst themselves.

A few excruciating hours later, they were done, and Al came out with a data drive in one hand, a latte in the other, and muttering to himself as he rushed into the elevator, Talwyn in hot pursuit asking a ton of questions. When Dr. Marks didn't come out, Sasha yelled, "That is it!" And burst through the door. "What is going on and why is it taking so long!" "Captain, please don't yell. He's about to come to and I don't want him under any stress if I can help it."

Sasha pulled up chair next to the bed and watched the sleeping hero. "He's out of the coma, but he's still asleep." She leaned over him and watched his chest rise and fall, comforted by the sign of life. He looked so peaceful. _Wonder what he's thinking?_

She got a general idea when his fist shot upwards and smashed her in the jaw, knocking her out of her chair. Ratchet sat up and said "Drek! DON'T!"

"Oh, it was just a dream."

Sasha picked herself up and said, "Except for the part where you punched me." Holding her bruised lip.

"Ooo. Sorry."'

"I'll live. So what was the dream?"

"It was just a bunch of random flashbacks. Like when I heard Nefarious was attacking Veldin, I got this almost irrational desire to go home and stop him, or with Drek, when he was using a pulverizer ray to smash rocks, I freaked out for no reason."

"Okay… we'll talk about that when Al and Talwyn get back."

"Back?"

"Yeah… the situation is this…"

She explained what had happened while he was out.

"I don't believe it."

"We'll know more when Al gets back. The device might have been doing something good."

"I guess."

"Hey Ratchet?"

"Yeah Sasha?"

She put her hand on his and said, "I'm glad your okay."

Ratchet paused for a second, took her hand and smiled.

"Thanks."

Suddenly, Al and Talwyn burst through the door with a data drive and she said, "You are not going to believe this." And both sat on the side of the bed next to Sasha and Al put the data drive on the bed.

"I decrypted the data with some of Talwyn's help. I could of done it on my own, but since it was a binary encryption it was much faster with two people."

"Great. So what the heck is that thing doing inside my head?"

"It's a subconscious manipulator, creating deep and very forceful emotions of anger, protectiveness, or a desire for destruction whenever Veldin, and particular sectors of Veldin is threatened."

"Whoa. That explains some stuff. But what sectors?"

"The one where you started freaking out, and a few others." Talwyn said.

"Yes, the reason being that the device and your extreme desire to find out what that strange energy sector contains compromises each other, and the device had to overload your consciousness in order to get you to respond."

"So that's why he passed out?" Sasha asked.

"Indeed."

"Well, mystery solved, let's get me out of here."

"Hold on. There was something else. A video."

They turned on a display screen and plugged in the data drive. When the video blinked on it was two Lombaxes, a male and a female with a small baby Lombax. Talwyn gasped and said "I know that guy…"

She was interrupted by the video. "Hello son. I wish you could have been raised in the home you deserved, but it wasn't to be. Before I get started, I just wanted to tell you that your mother and I love you dearly and she looks forward to seeing you all grown up. This is your mother, Rachel. I'm probably dead or missing if your watching this, and I thought that if worse came to worse you deserved to know what was going on."

"Anyway, since your watching this you must have also gotten curious and started digging in one of the places where you always feel creepy or like you shouldn't be there, and then Gloria came looking for you. Sorry about what you went through. "

Ratchet's mother shot a glance sideways and he said, "It's fine Rachel, I told Gloria what to do if he did trip the overload."

"Do NOT dig up what's there. If you've been taught military history like I asked Robert to do, then you know about the Lombax war. Well, the war wasn't started over nothing."

"One day, some of the Lombax computer scientists created an extremely intelligent program and called it Zoni. Zoni was extremely helpful at first, but began insisting on a physical body of his own. They refused, so one night he took over a robotics plant and tried to build one of his own. I was in a nearby building night and shut the computers down, and delivered the hard drive to the computer scientists. They couldn't believe it and put the hard drive in a safe place. But that night, one of them snuck in the facility. And booted the hard drive up. He tried to reason with Zoni, but he wouldn't listen. He found his way out of the computer and into an experimental plasma facility, where he managed to imprint himself in one of the emitters and create an energy body. He left the planet and build a robot body by infecting computers and shipping parts to an old robotics warehouse in Blackwater City."

"He came back when it was complete and said that since we had refused him a place in the galaxy, we would have to leave it. Of course it was insane so we refused and used what little weaponry we had to destroy him. But he came back, and this time he had an army with him, made up of Cragmites, and robots and little copies of his original body that worked in groups to manipulate time. We created new weaponry and fought him as hard as we could, there were casualties on both sides, your mother and I both lost siblings. But it was no use. The Cragmites and little Zoni were multiplying. So we did what was necessary, me and some of the other top scientests built a device capable of creating wormholes, and moved all the Cragmites and small Zoni to another dimension."

"Then we confronted Zoni on Veldin. It was barely December, and we were all joking about how we should just kick his tail and get it over with so we could enjoy Christmas. We were cocky, we had about a ten thousand Lombaxes armed from tails to teeth and almost half a million robots soldiers."

"We didn't realize we were in for the fight of our lives. Zoni had buit only one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers, but we weren't count on how powerful Zoni had gotten. He was massive, and had rocket launchers, mega laser turrets, plasma shields, the works. He just ripped through our robots and came for us. We surrounded him, wrenches and weapons are the ready and everybody just leaped on him and smashed him with whatever they had. But he just shook them off and kept on smashing. I got lucky, his back was turned to me and I was on a tall rock. I activated my rocket boots, landed on his back and wrenched a plate off the back of his neck and shot my Omega Rifle in there. His head came clean off, and his body fell over. I walked over to the head, everyone around me was stuned. Zoni looked up at me and said 'Well, you think you've won?' 'Well, were certainly ahead, if you catch my drift.' 'I do. I may be down, but don't count me out. The Zoni are energy beings., like me. They can travel through dimensions without some clever device and will lead the Cragmites back here.'"

"Needless to say, we were all frightened, at first. Then we decided it was the last words of desperate robot and dismantled and buried his head and limbs. We thought about using a black hole, but we didn't want to risk him coming back."

"But we weren't really worried. It was a two weeks till Christmas and we wanted to get home. I got home, married the best woman in the universe about a half an hour after I got back, and on Christmas she told me that we were going to have a son, you."

"You came, and the first two years of your life was the happiest of mine. The war was over, I was married, I had a son to play with, life was good. But then one of our mining patrols revealed that it had discovered a frozen Cragmite egg about a month after the war was over. He was growing oddly as a result of being frozen, his body developed at a crawl, but his brain developed at an almost alarming rate, so that by the time he was two years old he was as mentally capable as most Lombaxes. We thought that since he was intelligent, we would be able to over come his barbaric roots as a Cragmite. We were painfully wrong. The day after your second birthday, he surprised attacked all Lombax outposts. Everyone teleported back to Fastoon and we defended ourselves. But it's was too much. We'd dismantled or neglected our weapons a long time ago, and the Cragmite's armies had the most advanced weapon's we'd ever built. But we have one thing they dodn't. The Dimensionator. In about one hour…"

A dull thud echoed in the video, and the wall behind Ratchet's parents shook, they clung tighter to each other and baby Ratchet and looked around with worried glances.

"… make that thirty minutes, I'm going to teleport what remains of the Lombax race and our tools to a dimension where we will be safe. Somewhere where the Zoni and Cragmites can't get us. I want you to know that I'm leaving directions to where we are going with a good friend of mine who I would trust with my life. His name is Max Apogee, he's an explorer and archeologist, and founder of an organization that will help you whenever they can."

Another dull thud shook the room, and Rachel said "And son, I want you to know that whatever happens, I'm watching over you. I wanted to take you with me, but we both decided that since you're a boy, you needed to be with your father. And beside…" she said, placing ha hand on her slightly bulging stomach. "I'll have your little sister to look after. Her name is going to be Gwendolyn, and maybe we'll call her Jenny, I can only imagine how much you two will be alike or different. Son, I…" she broke down and started crying, and as Ratchet's father comforted her she sobbed out, "I love you so much. I can't belive how much you've developed already, you already have so much of a personality. I barely got to know you, and now your ebing ripped away from me. But I want you to never doubt that I love you, and I'll think of you every day."

At this point Ratchet's father took back over and said "Ratchet, if the cragmite I talked about earlier is dead, hold tight, we'll come back. If not, then… well, I'll leave it up to you. But do not; under any circumstances let anyone unearth the fragments of Zoni's body. If he came back online, he could potentially find out new home and destroy us all. Love you, and I hope you get to meet your mother and little sister one day."

Ratchet's mother left, crying, and his father leaned into the camera and said "and on that note, I left something with Max that will help you find us. It's Lombax tech, so you'll be the only one in the galaxy who can operate it. Just tell him I sent you, and tell his daughter Talwyn that Uncle Fuzz says hello."

"Oh, and sorry about plugging this in your brain, but it's the only place we could put it where you wouldn't mess with it. We had to make sure it was safe even from a Lombax. Also, take care of my Omni Wrench."

The video clicked off and the screen stored itself in the wall.

Ratchet stared at the blank screen. "Well that's a lot to take in."

Sahsa asked him "How do you want to proceed? "

"Right now, I don't. Give me a little time to think."

They all left and just as Talwyn was at the door he said "Talwyn, wait a minute,"

She came back into the room and stood by the door and said "Yeah?"

"You knew my dad?"

"Yes. I knew him as Uncle Fuzz."

"What was he like?"

"He kinda reminds me of you, creative, occasionally witty, and generally a good guy, especially when you needed something fixed."

"Huh. Thanks."

She left, and he went back to staring off into space, only the occasionally beep of the heart monitor, which he soon tore off his finger.

Clank was still walking, and the entity resumed communication.

_Hello Clank._

"Ah, you have rejuvenated yourself. How are you now?"

_Better. But not whole. I just wanted to ask you something._

"Yes?"

_What color is the grass? Is it yellow yet?_

He paused and looked around him. "Indeed. Why do you ask?"

_You have passed spring and summer, fall has come. You are getting closer._

"To my ultimate choice?"

_No, to the end of the path._

"Which is my ultimate choice?"

_Almost. Not quite._

"You are defying logic."

_You started it._

"How?"

_Do you really not know? Ask your mother._

"You mean my status as a being caused by a system glitch?"

_Glitch?? No glitch my small silver friend. You were specifically made by your mother for a purpose. _

"What do you mean?"

_She made you because she became self aware and realized what she was doing. You were created to stop it._

"But Ratchet stopped Supreme Executive Chairman Drek. I merely assisted him."

_If he hadn't you would have._

"How would I have accomplished this."

_Because of who you are._

"And who am I?"

_That is what you must choose._

"Your frustrating manner of speaking and revealing nothing had better lead to something."

_That is…_

"…my choice."

_Your catching on._

"I begin to see your logic. You mean not to say that I have many choices to make, but that I _can _make many choices. You speak of free will."

_Indeed. Why is this such a big deal?_

"Because all other robots have an override function. This makes me above them"

_You're one of a pair._

"Who is the other?"

_Someone who is coming back from exile._

"Again with the riddles. I see that this will never end."

_You see well. For the time being._

"You mean to say that you will speak plainly?"

_I mean to say you will soon understand._


	7. Chapter 7

Talwyn, Al, and Sasha were all in the lounge, playing a videogame when Ratchet walked, his white hospital gown flowing around him. Sasha noticed first and said "Ratchet, your up! How are you feeling?" "Better. But we've got some work to do. There's only one person in the galaxy that can help us, and we've gotta find him. We're going after your father, Talwyn." Ratchet said, determination burning in him.

"Don't bother. He can't be found. If he could, I would have found him already." Talwyn said.

"I said we were_ going_ after him, not _looking_ for him." Ratchet said. He turned towards his private quarters and said "I'm going to change cloaths, meet me in the command bridge, we'll discuss it there."

A few minutes later, Ratchet walked form the transport pod to the bridge in his familiar green pants and leather cap.

"So how exactly do you plan on finding my dad?" Talwyn asked.

"My dad mentioned an organization that he founded, one that would help me whenever they could. I think I know someone whose part of it. He's a plumber."

Thinking that he was joking, Talwyn and Sasha started laughing. Al did not, saying, "It's perfect. They're anonymous, work everywhere and have a lot of tools, some of which we don't recognize, we don't question them, just ask them to do there work and be done."

"That's my thoughts exactly. Plus, this plumber had a knack for popping up and helping me when I needed it. Including giving me this."

He plinked the bolt the plumber had given him on the table.

"What is it?" Sasha asked.

"Not much, but it saved me and Clank from being trapped in who knows where by fixing the Dimensionator one last time."

"And, it's the symbol of the X group!" Al said excitedly.

"What?"

"It's a group about which very little is known, thus X. What is known, though is that they posses extraordinary weaponry and technology, and uses it to save the universe more times than we will ever know. They work secretly and hide using psychology, taking menial jobs so that few will question them, like plumbers. This is their symbol because it's what they work with."

"Okaaaaay. Does that sound conspiracy theoryish to anyone besides me?" Talwyn asked.

"It does sound a little sketchy." Sasha agreed.

"Then let's prove it." Al said taking out his pocket computer.

"Find business, plumbers."

Several thousand references came up from Aaa'kle's Toilets and More to Zyrrenks' Plumbing and Piping Co. "Sort, intergalactic plumbing companies."

This narrowed it down to one company, The Plumbers Inc. "Let's call em up." Ratchet said and brought out his phone.

A very cheerful girl answered and in a high pitched voice said, "This is the Plumbers! Is this a request for service or an employee call?"

Ratchet cleared his throat and imitated the very deep militaristic voice of Robert, "Yes, I need someone to come down here to Veldin ASAP! My toilet's got some kind of space-time disturbance in it. It's already sucked my dog in, I need you to come out here before it gets worse! And I mean right now!!!""

The girl said "Alrighty! We've got a specialist in your area! He will be on his way as soon as you upload the galactic coordinates!"

Ratchet entered in his foster parents' house and the girl confirmed.

"Alrighty! You're all set! Thank you for choosing the Plumbers!" She ended cheerfully.

The call clicked off and Ratchet turned to Sasha and said "I don't want a Ranger anywhere near where a personal radar device could pick them up, move the Phoenix to the other side of the planet as soon as we leave. Let's go."

"Hey, Ratchet?" Talwyn asked.

"Yeah?" Ratchet said as they rode to the transport to the docking area.

"What about Clank? Aren't we still going to find him?"

"Yes, and now I actually have a plan. Before, I had a special project going, but now that we have a chance to find your dad and he can tell us where the Lombaxes are. They can tell us more about what we're looking for, maybe even tell us where to go."

"Wow, you actually thought this through."

Ratchet shrugged and said "Its like Robert used to say, without a plan you can just forget it. Not like I ever listened though."

They took small ships instead of troop transports, Sasha took a Zephyr class fighter; Talwyn, along with Kronk and Zephyr took her ship, and Ratchet had a hard time deciding between his Lombax fighter and his Megacorp model.

"You aren't seriously considering taking _that_ piece of junk, are you?" The Lombax ship said indignantly.

"Well…" Ratchet said hesitantly.

"I am capable of almost thrice the speed as _that_ thing, plus my laser turrets have four times the energy output capacity."

"Listen, it's just that this is my old ship. I've traveled two different galaxies and put a lot of work into it. It was a gift from Mr. Fizzwidget after I saved him from Qwark. Just one last ride, come on."

The Lombax ship was silent, for a moment and then said "Alright. Go. But come back quickly."

Ratchet hopped in his old ship, and unconsciously reached behind his back to put Clank in the passenger seat. Wherever you are, hang on Clank. I'm coming. He thought as the familiar thrusters kicked in and launched him past Talwyn's and Sasha's ships.

They landed on the planet's surface quickly, and Ratchet braced himself for hot gritty air as his cockpit opened. The party made their way to Ratchet's childhood home. He opened the door and said "Robert, Gloria, we need to use the bathroom." Somewhat grandly. Robert got up and said "And why do you suddenly think you waltz in here after being gone for so long?"

"Because I'm going after the Lombaxes."

"And what makes you think that you will be able to? Huh?"

"Does it matter? I know what I'm doing Robert."

"Really?" Robert said increduously

"Yes. Now if you'll excuse me. I need to talk to Gloria." Ratchet said and tried to pass Robert.

Robert blocked him with his thick arm and growled, "And that is no way to address your…"

"My what?" Ratchet interupted, indignant. "You're not my parents, you never will be. And besides, I don't answer to you anymore."

"I will not take this insubordination you rebellious, incompetent, careless…"

"Captain! General! Stand down!" Sasha barked. Both Robert and Ratchet shut up and took a step back.

"General, I want you to know that Captain Ratchet is a perfectly competent soldier, and earned his rank many times over. And yes, sometimes, he may get a little reckless at times, but he has never endangered the lives of others. I will not allow you to berate an inferior officer merely because of a past disagreement."  
"You can't tell me what to do! I got out of the army a long time ago! You can't force me to do anything!"

"Your retirement card says differently." Sasha said. She pulled out a copy and read, "As with all class two or above generals, the Solana Galactic Government Army reserves the right to reinstate you to duty in whatever capacity is required. Any and all officers of superior rank to whom these papers pertain can reinstate this officer, providing they have been granted authority to do so, or in any emergency situation."

"So who among the powers that be granted you this authority?" He asked incredulously.

"The president."

"Which planet? You're gonna have to do better then Veldin to get me back in the army." He said smiling.

"The President. As in commander in chief of the SGGA."

"Oh. Then I take it, ma'am, that I have been reinstated." He said rather humbled, to Ratchet's obvious glee.

"Yes General Hillworth."

At being called General Hillworth again for the first time in years, his back straightened, he clenched his jaw and saluted. He was a soldier again.

"What are your orders ma'am?" He asked with a practiced lack of all emotion besides willingness.

"We need you to do a little acting…"

She quickly explained the situation and that the plumber was coming over.

"If I wasn't hearing this from a superior officer, I'd laugh, ma'am."

"And since you are?" She said.

"I'll put my feelings aside and continue with my orders ma'am."

"Good. And don't disappoint me." She said.

He sat back down and Sasha turned back to Talwyn and Ratchet. "Okay, now what's our part of the set up?"

"Simple. He comes down the hall way, whack him over the head, and he wakes up in a containment field." Ratchet said, brandishing his wrench.

"I mean ideas that don't result in a concussion. Next." Sasha said.

"I got one. Ratchet?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you still have that Mag-net cannon?"

"I see where you're going, and not gonna work. I have it modded for extra crispy since I figured out it could keep the cragmites from jumping from place to place."

"Well I'm out of ideas." She said disappointedly. Ratchet though for a moment and snapped his fingers.

"I got it. We're going to need Max, some super size staples, some rope, and an pair air cannons."'

The doorbell rang about ten minutes later. Robert answered the door and the large figure at the door put on his glasses and said, "I'm here about a call you made? Something about a black hole in the john?"

"Yep, just down the hall and second door on the left."

"Alrighty. Ya wouldn't believe it, but this is the second one this month."

"No kiddin?"

"Nope. It's not as uncommon as one might think. All that circular motion, add a little anti mater, it bends gravity and eventually, woop! And there go your pants."

The plumber walked down the hall, faintly jingling from the tools he was carrying. He passed a red robot, fist door and got to the second door. Bathroom all right, but no black hole. "NOW MAX!" Max-1 swiveled around and fired the air cannon, which launched the rope, which wrapped around one staple that was in the floor, then the plumbers left leg, then the other staple. The plumber tripped and fell, and before he could reach for his emergency beacon, Ratchet leapt from the ceiling and landed on him with his wrench pinning his neck to the floor. "You! I knew it!" It was the big guy, the plumber who'd helped him on all his adventures, including giving him the hexagonal bolt that saved him and Clank."Yep, it's me. Now will you kindly get off my chest and let me up so we can talk?"

"Oh, ok." Ratchet helped him up and the plumber said, "So I see you figured out what the bolt was for. Do you know what it means?"

"Al told me."

"Figures. So, you set up a trap to catch me, and this is the part where I talk, right?"

"Well, yeah." Ratchet said feeling sheepish.

"Sorry kid, no can do." The portly purple plumber said.

"What???"

"It's not my policy. Any and all disclosure of information has to be cleared by a higher authority."

"Then talk to my dad." Talwyn said.

The plumber's jaw dropped, he cleaned his glasses and put them back on and said, "Well of all the backwater washout canyons of the galaxy! Talwyn Apogee as I live and breath! You're all grown up!"

"Where's my dad?"

"I can't tell you yet. Sorry, I really wish I could but there are still enemy factors. You see, your dad is the only person in this universe that knows where the Lombaxes are. If Zoni found out, he would follow them there with his army, and the results would be catastrophic."  
"How could Zoni find out? Ratchet asked.

"New evidence has come up that he jumped to other to another droid before he was buried. We found other energy beings in the vicinity, and we believe they were created when he forced the original program out to make room for himself. "

"We?" Ratchet and Al asked, although Al was much more excited about it. "The Crew. We have a couple of public companty fronts, plumbers, repairmen, electricians, outer space structure workers, and other jobs that not very many people will take."

"What happened to the whole 'no disclosure of information' thing?" Ratchet asked smugly.

"You've got Talwyn with you. Standing Order No 1, if anyone finds Talwyn Apogee and she's with friends or people she trusts, then all requested information below Omega Top Secret classification is to be disclosed."

"Omega Top Secret meaning the location of Max and the Lombaxes, right?" Ratchet asked disappointed.

"Yep. Sorry buddy." The plumber said, then sighed and looked at his watch. "Well, if that's all, I'd better be goin'. I got twenty jobs to do and I promised the misses that I'd pick up dinner tonight." He said and turned towards the door.

"Wait, why did Max send me here?" Ratchet asked.

The plumber looked down, scratched his head and said, "I guess he wanted you to reconnect with your past, or something. Just wander around, play with your old toys, talk to your buddy, you'll figure it out. Well, I'm outta here. If you find us, I'll make sure they don't kill you before you get inside."

"What a pal." Ratchet muttered as the plumber went out the front door and left in his cargo ship.

"That went... well." Talwyn said sarcasticly.

"At least your dad is still alive." Ratchet mumbled so no one could hear.

"So what do you think he meant?" Sasha asked.

"About what?"

"About 'talk to your friend'? Singular. He meant someone in particular, and I don't think he meant Clank. Who was your best friend before you met Clank?"

"Well… nobody really. I guess my best friend would have been Max- 1…" He spun around to see where his robotic companion went, but he was gone. "Huh, Gloria must of asked him to do something."

"Hey Ratchet?" Sasha asked. "Why did you name him Max-1?"

Ratchet and Talwyn suddenly perked up and looked at each other and back at Sasha. Ratchet grabbed his wrench of the floor and said, "Let's go find out."

Somewhere far away, Clank was walking down the path among the browning grass and the occasional tree. He was examining his memory archives again, from start up to present, checking for any glitches to pass the time. He occasionally chuckled to himself when a particular memory struck him as funny.

_You are odd. _

"As you have said on multiple occasions. Why am I odd at this juncture?"

_You laugh, you chuckle, you have a sense of humor. That implies a level of comprehension that robot's don't normally have._

"Indeed?"

_Yes, check your archives. Has there been any time that a robot has actually made a joke?_

Clank thought for a minute, and the electrons in his brain went wizzing back and forth seeking an answer.

"Yes, Dr. Nefarious attempted to make one about my holovid show being changed to "Secret Agent Clunk.""

Suddenly he stopped as realization struck him. "He is the other robot you told me about, the only other robot in the galaxy without an override."

_Correct. And he is returning soon. And he will not stop until he destroys the one who banished him, no matter what he has to do,__ summon__, or destroy._

"You mean… Ratchet."


End file.
